Contactless Drying.

[Christopher]

I'm looking for a sub-£100 dryer.
I've seen the Metro Vac Sidekick, but wondered if there were any cheaper options which are as compact. Anyone?
Thanks.

 

[leeds2592]

I'm looking for a sub-£100 dryer.
I've seen the Metro Vac Sidekick, but wondered if there were any cheaper options which are as compact. Anyone?
Thanks.

Pet dryer?

I've just ordered one for the dog but will be using it on the car as well, about £70 off amazon.

 

[aucky]

Good for shuts and vents etc, but I find them useless on big panels. It just breaks the beads up to smaller drops.
Much less effective than I imagined! Still, it has uses.

FYI I have a pet dryer from Ebay, ~£60

 

[Niall]

I've used @JamesBryan's, wouldn't like to try and dry a whole car with it as said. Good for getting in the gaps though!

 

[JamesBryan]

I've used @JamesBryan's, wouldn't like to try and dry a whole car with it as said. Good for getting in the gaps though!

You probably could, but it'd take a while and that's with the metro air force blaster which is pretty powerful.

 

[Christopher]

Thanks for the replies. I think I'll go with the Sidekick, given that it's only a bit more money and the reviews seem really decent.

 

[Gally]

The sidekick is good, I was lucky enough to have a shot of one for the weekend and uit's very good. I have 2 massive compressors but it was ideal for what I needed.

A really good drying towel and no dragging should still help massively as open panel the sidekick can't do it all itself.

Also, massively important is something like after wash by chemical guys, drying lube is still underated imo.

 

[Chrisgti6]

I've a 50l compressor in the garage, with a flow of about 15cfm. Could I use this for drying my car? If so is there a specific attachment for this type of job I can pick up?

 

[Christopher]

The sidekick is good, I was lucky enough to have a shot of one for the weekend and uit's very good. I have 2 massive compressors but it was ideal for what I needed.

A really good drying towel and no dragging should still help massively as open panel the sidekick can't do it all itself.

Also, massively important is something like after wash by chemical guys, drying lube is still underated imo.

That's my exact plan mate, yeah. Larger panels I'll blot and dab and then use the Sidekick for smaller panels/shuts/trim etc.
TBH with Fusso and KOG on the car, water barely sticks to it anyway.

 

[Ex-User (72296)]

Is drying with a half decent towel that bad, if the car has been well cleaned etc?

 

[JamesBryan]

Is drying with a half decent towel that bad, if the car has been well cleaned etc?

Any contact is seen as being bad contact.

But IMO, if you're being that picky then you wouldn't drive your car at all.

A quick detailer as a drying aid will help reduce damage massively though.

 

[Christopher]

Any contact is seen as being bad contact.

But IMO, if you're being that picky then you wouldn't drive your car at all.

A quick detailer as a drying aid will help reduce damage massively though.

What James said, yeah.
I'm super careful with drying but I still end up with light scratches. I've tried three different brands of towel too.
This is the only option I can see of really keeping them to a minimum. The car isn't a daily, so I'd like to keep it as mint as I can, within reason/fair use.

 

[Ex-User (72296)]

Soon you'll need contactless washing then, mental!

 

[Christopher]

Soon you'll need contactless washing then, mental!

Pre-wash and Avalanche snow foam... so I already have for the most part.

 

[Ex-User (72296)]

Pre-wash and Avalanche snow foam... so I already have for the most part.

I use snow foam as I enjoy using it, but it's more of a gimmick, doesn't get much cleaner!

 

[JamesBryan]

What James said, yeah.
I'm super careful with drying but I still end up with light scratches. I've tried three different brands of towel too.
This is the only option I can see of really keeping them to a minimum. The car isn't a daily, so I'd like to keep it as mint as I can, within reason/fair use.

Have you tried the Polished Bliss Luxury Towel? They're soft as Ken.

 

[leeds2592]

Problem I have with drying is, I've got two Auto Finesse Auqa Deluxe towels and always try to pat dry but it always leaves water marks so I end up wiping the panels to get it dry without marks.

I also end up with loads of little bits of fluff on the car even though they've been washed loads of times!

 

[Christopher]

Have you tried the Polished Bliss Luxury Towel? They're soft as Ken.

Nope, I might give them a try then

 

[Christopher]

Problem I have with drying is, I've got two Auto Finesse Auqa Deluxe towels and always try to pat dry but it always leaves water marks so I end up wiping the panels to get it dry without marks.

I also end up with loads of little bits of fluff on the car even though they've been washed loads of times!

Same. Especially on larger panels

 

[JamesBryan]

What are you guys washing the towels with?

Chemical Guys Microfibre Wash is excellent.

 

[leeds2592]

Just bog standard non bio gel stuff I think, the one with no conditioners/softeners etc.

 

[ForceIndia]

I've protected mine with a decent layer of tree sap. Fully protected under that s**t. Nothing but the best for the uber bus.

 

[Christopher]

Just bog standard non bio gel stuff I think, the one with no conditioners/softeners etc.

Same. lol.

 

[Christopher]

I've protected mine with a decent layer of tree sap. Fully protected under that s**t. Nothing but the best for the uber bus.

I'm shocked that it even gets the bucket and sponge treatment.

 

[Gally]

Klin drying towels are the new daddy!

Also Chris bilt hamber is a true cleaner. Most snowfoams are more show than cleaning power.

 

[Mr R.]

Klin drying towels are the new daddy!

Also Chris bilt hamber is a true cleaner. Most snowfoams are more show than cleaning power.

I use the BH snowfoam, you don't get much foam but it seems to work really well in removing the crap. [emoji2]

 

[Gally]

You don't really want foam. You want clean!

 

[JamesBryan]

Hazsafe followed by Avalanche works well for me.

The foam keeping Hazsafe working longer so it doesn't dry out and it pulls down all the stuff that Hazsafe is loosening.

 

[Christopher]

Klin drying towels are the new daddy!

Also Chris bilt hamber is a true cleaner. Most snowfoams are more show than cleaning power.

Link?
I'll give this a try too. I want to rule out any of my own errors first!

 

[Gally]

Nick smeaton on Instagram.

 

[Christopher]

Nick smeaton on Instagram.

Thanks mate.

 

[leeds_182]

If my wife caught me drying the car with a hair dryer she'd give me a slap and rightfully so. There's a line!

 

[mace¬]

 

[leeds2592]

If my wife caught me drying the car with a hair dryer she'd give me a slap and rightfully so. There's a line!

If my GF caught me riding about on a little gay scooter she'd give me a slap and rightfully so.

Horses for courses and all that


I jest of course but the point still stands.

 

[Christopher]

If my GF caught me riding about on a little gay scooter she'd give me a slap and rightfully so.

Horses for courses and all that


I jest of course but the point still stands.

Headshot.

 

[leeds2592]

Headshot.

He knows I'm joking .... hopefully haha.

 

[AdDaMan]

Ive bought a big DI filter so can just dry out naturally leaving no marks.

 

[super_ted]

Surely a quick blast around the block gets rid of water from the larger panels or just use an airline?

 

[leeds2592]

Surely a quick blast around the block gets rid of water from the larger panels or just use an airline?

Yep, quick blast around the block, get aload of dirt and bits on the paint work, park it back up and start sealing with the wax. Sounds good to me

 

[Christopher]

Yep, quick blast around the block, get aload of dirt and bits on the paint work, park it back up and start sealing with the wax. Sounds good to me :wink:

Or just dry the car with a rock.